May 2009
Server Upgrade We are doing an upgrade to some of our servers, so you may be in single user mode for a few moments. Spring Ride Competition Judging''' Judging will start May 1st and winners will be announced between May 15th - 20th. During this time, please do not take your ride apart even if a judge has already been there. VFK First Anniversary Events May 22nd, 2009 through May 31st, 2009. This has been an amazing first year and this is a fantastic community. In so many ways it seems only yesterday that we began this journey, and yet here we are at our one year anniversary. During this first year we have been blessed with the opportunity to celebrate with one another such joyful occasions as Halloween, Thanksgiving, Christmas, Easter, Birthdays, Anniversaries and the other holidays and special events that form the shared experiences of a community. We are so excited to be starting our second year and we already have projects in the works and ideas to take us through at least the next 20 years! We look forward to seeing everyone here for at least the next 20 anniversaries! Our first anniversary celebration starts today and we have lots of exciting things happening. Anniversary Client With the release of our anniversary client we are starting our count down to gold, which will coincide with the release of Space Age! Virtually every aspect of the new client has updates and enhancements: * Enhanced Interface with new bold look * Updated Communications Layer * Updated Rendering Engine * Enhanced Friends List with dynamic update * Enhanced IM with resize and multi-tabs * New Inventory with quantities * New Message Center with extended message view * New tool bar with sleek look and larger message area * Bigger Closet * Ignore Button * Motion/Actions with Wave, Hop and Dance * 12 Styles to customize your interface (Menu Button) * Choose the style that best matches your personality! * New styles will be added every month * Sound control * Joined rooms tab * Improved furniture movement panel * Updated Help with name change * Much, Much More! Plus the engine is now dramatically faster! Anniversary Pin When you login today you will receive our First Anniversary Pin. Anniversary Quest The VFK History of Anniversaries Quest! When and why do people celebrate birthdays and anniversaries? Since the time when people could tell the passing of a year by the moon, they have celebrated birthdays and other annual events. On today's quest, we will investigate the history of annual celebrations! Your reward for completing this quest will be 1,000 credits, and a Crystal First Anniversary Globe! Anniversary Ball We will have our First Anniversary Ball May 22nd, 2009 from 8:00 pm Eastern Time (5:00 pm pacific) to 10:00 pm Eastern Time (7:00 pm pacific) The First Anniversary Ball will also be held on May 23rd, 2009 from 8:00 pm Eastern Time (5:00 pm pacific) to 10:00 pm Eastern Time (7:00 pm pacific) There will of course be new outfits for the Anniversary Ball! Epic Quest for Space Our Epic Quest for Space begins this Sunday May 24th, 2009 and Space Age will open the following Sunday! Scavenger Hunts We will have scavenger hunts beginning on our first anniversary, with new ones each day until Space Age Opens! The prizes will all be gold related as we also count down to gold release! New commercial space and Pizza Items Alpha Girl was looking for Alpha Boy to help her move in about this time last year. On our first anniversary she should be able to finally find him at the new Pizza Restaurants! Keep watching for new events and releases all during our anniversary celebration week! We also have lots of updates planned for the site as well! We have a lot coming! Count Down to Gold With our new anniversary client we are starting our count down to gold which will coincide with the release of Space Age next Sunday! Watch for exciting gold items during our anniversary celebration week! VFK Ride Contest Results! May, 2009. Congratulations to all who entered our very first VFK Spring Ride Competition. The judges and the entire VFK staff thank all members and VIP members who participated. Over 600 rooms were entered in the contest. With so many fantastic rooms, the judges had a hard time picking 5 winners in the Member and VIP Member entries and 15 Honorable Mentions in each category. Everybody did a fantastic job and the judges had some hard decisions to make. All the judges applaud the awesome rooms and were honored to be a part of our first contest. The results are listed below with the Honorable Mentions placed in no specific order. Be sure to take the time to visit these fabulous rooms and take a ride! You can find them by going to the room box and clicking on the Rides Tab. You do not want to miss this experience! The prizes will be awarded at game close this evening. The ride rooms will be available on the Rooms form beginning at game open tomorrow morning. V.I.P. Category PrincessWendyBird 1st. Place pinkgirlygirl 2nd. Place BriarOtter 3rd. Place Nebula 4th. Place CaptainBlueMaxx 5th. Place V.I.P. Category - Honorable Mentions •Cindi-Lu •Flamanar •Freedom •Dean •Tiki •CursedMonkeyQueen •Corduroy •cloudymellowdisco •sunday_monkey •Boogie •Aceboy_Alex •SaberHand •StrawberryGirl •cottoncandy •Ormonddude Member Category KrazyPete 1st. Place coolmickeymv 2nd. Place Cerberus 3rd. Place CuteStarPluto 4th. Place sweet_onyx 5th. Place Member Category - Honorable Mentions •DoolittleLoafmore •FairyFigment •GrandHamster •greenpixiegirl •GuitarRockerChick •Jake •Mr.Owl •Ms.PrincessLucy •NeonMagicSnow •Neuu •redoagain •Stace •SuperAwesomeScott •SweetAsADaisy •wondermanforever There were three rounds of scoring with five judges in each round. Each room was individually judged using four different criteria by each judge, and those rooms scoring highest advanced to the next round. In the final round of scoring, the winning rooms were determined by the highest cumulative score. VFK Roswell Incident Quest! 7:00 A.M. Pacific Time Sunday, May 17th, 2009 to 10:00 P.M. Pacific Time Monday, May 18th, 2009. Almost sixty-two years ago, an "incident" took place in the desert on a remote ranch northwest of Roswell, New Mexico. A press release by the US military of Roswell Army Air Field was issued on the morning of July 8, 1947. It stated that "the wreckage of a crashed disk (UFO) had been recovered." The press release was sent over the wire services in time to make the afternoon edition of over thirty newspapers. After only hours, a second press release from the Fort Worth Army Air Field in Texas rescinded the first press release and claimed that the debris was from a weather balloon and its radar reflector. At the time, the public accepted the weather balloon story and the incident quietly disappeared. It has been cloaked in secrecy ever since. On today's quest, we will investigate the history of the Roswell "incident" and look into why the incident came back into the public eye, and what data is available surrounding the crashed UFO in Roswell, NM. Your reward for completing this quest will be 1,000 credits, and Alien Oculars! Developer Choice Award Our developers have been using their award winning AI Facilities Analysis Engine to let the computer choose the best ride rooms for the Developer Choice Award. The analysis should complete by May 20th, 2009. Here are the rides chosen so far to receive the Developer Choice Award by the AI engine: Ormondude Scrappergal Computer_boy Funny Tomorrow PunkRockUniverse Zack AllPrincess TikiTycoon Starz ooops CaptainBlueMaxx Chandigarh SpaceAce PrincessAvari We will update the list as the computer continues to make selections. The Developer Choice Award will be a unique developer Pin and Trophy. Again, remember, this selection is made based solely on computer analysis using our AI engine. VFK Space Enchantment Epic Quest Day 1! May 24th, 2009. Night after night, the most stunning and beautiful objects in the night sky, the moon and the planets have inspired awe and curiosity in mankind. Today we will begin a 7 day epic quest counting down to Space Age. In this week leading up to our journey into space, we will travel beyond the confines of the earth's gravity and out into space. We will first look at the Moon and then move on to the planets, learning for ourselves what we will see and experience when we visit these celestial objects. Your reward for completing this quest will be 1,000 credits, and the Space Enchantment Epic Quest Day 1 Pin! VFK Space Enchantment Epic Quest Day 2! May 25th, 2009. How do we know what the future in space will be like? We know it from the minds and imaginations of great science fiction writers and movie makers. These talented artists have taken scientific discovery and known technology and have explored the possibilities of living among the stars. The books and movies they have created have become a part of our everyday world and culture. Fictional characters like Captain Kirk, Flash Gordon and Luke Skywalker are very real to us. On this special day on our journey to Space Age, we will explore Sci-Fi "visions of the future" especially of the imagined future of war in space. Your reward for completing this quest will be 1,000 credits, and Space Enchantment Epic Quest Day 2 Pin! VFK Space Enchantment Epic Quest Day 3! May 26th, 2009. Life on Earth would not be possible without the Sun. It is the most brilliant object in the sky and an awesome power. At the center of the solar system, the sun is the cohesive force which holds nine planets, asteroids, meteoroids and other space matter in orbit around it. It's energy is essential for supporting and sustaining life. Humans rely on the sun for visual light, heat and even for powering solar devices. The Sun is responsible for regulating and determining climate and weather cycles on the Earth. For the third day of our epic quest for Space Enchantment, we will explore all about the Sun. Your reward for completing this quest will be 1,000 credits, and Space Enchantment Epic Quest Day 3 Pin! VFK Space Enchantment Epic Quest Day 4! May 27th, 2009. Technology and science have advanced at such an amazing rate that people living only a few centuries ago would likely think that our everyday lives are comprised almost entirely of magic. We have built horseless chariots that go blazingly fast, we have metal birds that carry us in the air, we have invisible energy that runs along a wire, and information that appears on a screen out of the air. We even launch ourselves into space on a pillar of fire. We take these wonders for granted everyday, and the same will be true of the future. We may be in a space ship in space, but all the daily activities of living will be carried out on schedule. In all this dazzling technology, we are still human, we will still work, discover and love. For the fourth day of our epic quest for Space Enchantment, we will look at Romance in Space! Your reward for completing this quest will be 1,000 credits, and Space Enchantment Epic Quest Day 4 Pin! VFK Space Enchantment Epic Quest Day 5! May 28th, 2009. Mars, the fourth planet from the sun, has long captured our imagination. The distinctive reddish color has been seen by observers since ancient times. In honor of their god of war, the Romans named the planet Mars. The ancient Egyptians called it "Her Descher" which means "the red one." It is also referred to by its similar nickname, "The Red Planet." Early astronomers saw what they believed to be canals crisscrossing the surface which gave rise to the belief that Mars was inhabited by intelligent beings. So why is Mars red, what are the canals, and are men really from Mars? For the fifth day of our epic quest for Space Enchantment, we will look at the beautiful and mysterious planet Mars. Your reward for completing this quest will be 1,000 credits, and Space Enchantment Epic Quest Day 5 Pin! VFK Space Enchantment Epic Quest Day 6! May 29th, 2009. One of the focuses of modern space research involves locating the basic supplies for sustaining human life on other planets and moons so the possibilities of colonization can be explored. Where ever humans go, they will need such necessities of life as a supply of water, oxygen and some way to produce food. Colonization also hinges on a location being suitable in terms of the environment of the planet or moon. For the sixth day of our epic quest for Space Enchantment, we will look at the possible locations for space colonies and why they have been considered. Your reward for completing this quest will be 1,000 credits, and the Space Enchantment Epic Quest Day 6 Pin! VFK Space Enchantment Epic Quest Day 7 - Don't fall Asleep! May 30th, 2009. Over the years, the discoveries and development of technology that would make going to space and ultimately surviving in space a reality, has been extensive. Each discovery has taken great minds, dedication, and hard work to take each crucial step in the advancement toward the stars. From developing nuclear energy to building rocket engines, however, each of these major discoveries has had an intriguing common element. For the seventh day of our epic quest for Space Enchantment, we will look at what went into our trek into space. Your reward for completing this quest will be 1,000 credits, and ???! Today's Events May 31st, 2009. The Pod The mysteries of the Pod will be disclosed! Quest Jupiter, the fifth planet from the sun, is the largest planet in the solar system. Its diameter is more than eleven times greater than Earth's and one tenth of the sun's. To fill up the same volume of space as the huge planet, it would take over a thousand Earths. You can see Jupiter in the night sky appearing brighter than most of the stars. After Venus, it is the second brightest planet. The planet's moons have been the focus of study for possible colonization. For our quest today, we will look at Jupiter and its intriguing moons and satellites. Your reward for completing this quest will be 1,000 credits, and a Space Sheep! Space Age In conjunction with today's Quest and the discovery of the mysteries of the Pod, Space Age will open at 9:00 am Pacific (12:00 Eastern). Watch for game blasts and updates on Space Age. Space Pirates Laser Tag Helpful instructions for Space Pirates Laser Tag Walk: Arrow Keys Jump: Space Bar Crouch: When walking or standing the control key will cause you to crouch. When crouched, the control key will cause you to stand Run: Shift key plus arrow keys Roll: Control key while walking To shoot just click with your mouse on the object you wish to shoot. The Laser Tag game today will record hits and misses. So that everyone can have a good time and get used to the motions in the Laser Tag game, the scoring for credits will begin this evening. So have fun, and enjoy an exciting game of laser tag with your friends. Space Pirates Ship Battle The Space Pirates large ships are in dock and the day will start with a party in the ships! Galactic Trading Post (Space Shop) The Galactic Trading Post is fully stocked with lots of outfits and furniture from the future. These items are out of this world! Space Guest Rooms There are two new space guest rooms available for the space adventurer in the Land Office.